Major economies could save hundreds of billions of dollars annually by replacing oil-powered transport with electric vehicles, according to the authors of the newly released report. Shifting from imported oil to electric technology has the potential to cut global import bills by more than $600 billion each year.
“Replacing imported oil used in road transport with EVs would reduce importers’ bills by over a third – around $600 billion per year.” The report further states, “With oil at $80 per barrel, China saves over $28 billion a year in avoided oil imports through its current fleet of EVs alone; Europe about $8 billion per year and India $0.6 billion per year.”
This indicates that by moving away from gasoline and diesel engines, countries can significantly reduce the amount of money they send abroad to purchase fuel. Instead of relying on expensive foreign oil, these nations can utilize electricity to power their transportation networks, keeping wealth within their domestic economies and protecting themselves from price spikes in global energy markets.
The report “The energy security fall-out: from fossil fuel fragility to electric independence” was published by the energy think tank Ember on March 18, 2026. It was prepared by a team of authors led by Daan Walter, Sam Butler-Sloss, and Dave Jones.
